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I  THEOLOGICAL  SEMINARY,! 


Princeton,  N.  J.    W'^ 


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^      Bequeathed  by  the  Hon.  E.  BOUDINOT,  LL.D. 


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SERMON, 


PREACHED    JAN.    10,    1810, 


AT   THE 


DEDICATION 


OF   THE 


CHURCH    IN    PARK    STREET^ 


BOSTON. 


BY  EDWARD  D.  GRIFFIN,  D.  D. 

STATED  PREACKER   IN   SAID  CHURCH,  AND  BARTIET    IRtrE.'lOR  OF  PULPIT 
ELOQUENCE  IN  THE  DIVINITY  COLLEGE  AT  ANDOVER. 


BOSTON : 

PRINTEO    AND    PUBLISHED    BY    LINCOLN    &    EDMANDS, 
NO.    53,    CORNHILL, 


AT    A    MEETING    OF   THE    BRETHREN    01'    THE    PARK    STREET 
CHURCH,    THURSDAY    EVENING,    JAN.    11,    ISiO, 

Voted,  That  the  thanks  of  this  church  be  presented  to 

the  Rev.  Dr.  Griffin  for   his  excellent  sermon,  delivered 

at   the  dedication  of  our  new  church,  on  Wednesday,   lOih 

inst;    and  the  clerk  he  directed  to  request  a  copy  thereof 

for  the  press. 

y/  t7'ue  co/iy  of  record. 

Attest,  Wm.  Thurston,  Clerk. 


SERMON. 


2    CHRON.    6.    18. 

BUT  WILL  GOD  IN  VERY  DEED  DWELL  WITH  MEN  ON 
THE  EARTH  ?  BEHOLD,  HEAVEN,  AND  THE  HEAVEN  OF 
HEAVENS,  CANNOT  CONTAIN  THEE  ;  HOW  MUCH  LESS 
THIS    HOUSE    WHICH    I    HAVE    BUILT  ! 

Such  a  view  of  the  immensity  and  omnipresence 
of  God  was  presented  to  the  vievv'  of  Solomon, 
as  he  lifted  his  eyes  to  heaven,  to  offer  that  me- 
morable prayer  at  the  dedication  of  the  temple. 
Elevated  on  a  brazen  scaffold,  in  the  centre  of  an 
open  court,  with  the  heavens  for  his  canopy,  and 
surrounded  by  the  many  thousands  who  had  as- 
sembled to  attend  the  feast  of  tabernacles,  he 
kneeled  ; — while  breathless  silence  held  the  im- 
mense concourse,  and  e^  ery  eye  was  fixed  on  their 
king,  the  royal  suppliant  kneeled  ;    and  spreading 


forth  his  hands  towards  heaven,  offered  this  prayer 
to  the  Being  for  whose  honour  he  had  reared,  and 
to  whose  service  he  was  dedicating,  that  magnifi- 
cent edifice.  While  his  eye  surveyed  the  heavens, 
which  God  had  spread  out  as  a  tent  to  dwell  in  ; — 
while  his  subUmated  mind  rose  to  the  contempla- 
tion of  that  infinite  Being  who  suspended  from  His 
throne,  as  a  mote,  the  heavens  and  the  earth  ; — 
while,  from  that  amazing  height,  he  looked  down 
upon  the  speck  which  he  had  called  a  temple, — he 
cried  aloud,  IV^ill  God  in  Dejy  deed  dwell  with  men 
on  the  earth  ?  behold,  heai^en,  and  the  heai^en  of 
hea'uens,  cannot  contain  thee  ;  how  much  less  this 
house  which  I  have  built  ! 

As  I  rise,  for  the  first  time,  to  minister  in  this 
humbler  temple,  and  look  round  upon  walls  and 
arches,  reared  for  a  habitation  of  the  God  of  Jacob, 
an  unusual  awe  seizes  my  mind,  and  constrains  me 
to  ask,  Does  He  whom  the  heaven  of  heavens  can- 
not contain,  dwell  in  any  place  ?  Will  He  conde- 
scend to  dwell  with  men  on  the  earth  ?  Can  we 
presume  to  hope  that  He  will  dwell  in  the  house 
which  we  haiie  built  ? 

These  three  questions  will  form  the  heads  of 
my  discourse,  and  lead  to  the  main  object  of  our 
present  meeting. 


I.  Does  He  whom  the  heaven  of  heavens  cannot 
contain,  dwell  in  any  place  ? 

The  essence  of  God  bears  no  relation  to  place  ; 
and  in  respect  to  His  knoivledge  and  agency.  He  is 
omnipresent.  Not  a  dust  that  is  driven  by  the 
whirlwind,  not  the  finest  filament  of  an  insect's 
wing,  not  an  atom  floating  in  the  remotest  bounds 
of  space,  but  is  constantly  inspected  by  His  eye, 
and  upheld  and  moved  by  His  hand. 

But  for  the  more  perfect  manifestation  of  Himself 
to  creatures.  He  has  consecrated  certain  places 
with  special  marks  of  His  presence.  There  is  pre- 
sented the  ear  which  hears  their  cries,  the  mouth 
which  answers,  and  the  hand  which  relieves  :  and 
there,  without  wandering  through  all  space,  they 
may  find  their  God.  The  most  distinguished  of 
these  places  is  the  heaven  of  heavens  ;  which, 
though  it  cannot  confine  His  glorious  Majesty,  is 
often  called  His  divclUng-place.  In  language  in- 
tended for  mortal  ears,  He  is  represented  as  seated 
there  on  a  visible  throne,  Himself  the  object  of 
distinct  vision,  and  holding  familiar  intercourse 
with  His  saints. 

What  exhibition  of  the  invisible  God  was  made 
in  heaven  before  the  ascension  of  Christ,  we  are 
not  informed  :  but  now,  in  the  person  of  Him  in 


8 

■whom  divelleth  all  the  fulness  of  the  Godhead  bodily j 
the  inhabitants  of  that  world  behold  God  man  f est 
in  the  flesh.  Formerly  there  was  a  msible  God  in 
the  tabernacle  and  temple  ;  now  there  is  in  heaven. 
Theji  He  dwelt  in  a  luminous  cloud  ;  noiv,  in  the 
humanity  of  Christ.  This  is  the  true  Shekinah, — 
the  glory  of  a  temple  not  made  with  hands.  There, 
on  a  glorious  throne,  sits  the  same  body,  with  the 
same  countenance,  that  was  seen  in  the  streets  of 
Jerusalem  ;  arrayed  in  the  splendour  which  mortal 
eyes  beheld  on  the  mount  of  transfiguration,  and  in 
Patmos.*  That  body  belongs  to  one  in  whom  the 
human  nature  is  raised  to  a  personal  union  with  the 
divine,  t  This  Person  is  the  IVord  by  which  God 
expresses  the  secrets  of  His  mind,  the  organ  by 
which  He  governs  the  universe,  the  channel  through 
which  all  His  communications  to  creatures  are 
made,  and  the  grand  medium  through  which  He  is 
seen.     In  this  Person  the  invisible  God  is  brought 

*  Matt.  17.   2.        Rev.  1.  13—15. 

■J-  By  this  is  meant,  (1)  that  the  union  is  so  intimate,  that,  with  the 
same  lips,  and  in  the  same  sentence.  He  can  apply  to  both  natures 
the  same  personal  pronoun  ,•  (John  10  18  ;)  —  (2)  that  the  sufFerings 
of  the  human  nature  are  as  meritorious  as  though  they  had  been 
the  sufferings  of  the  divine  ;  the  blood  that  was  shed  being  consider- 
ed the  blood  of  God  ;  (Acts  20.  28  ;)  —  (3)  that  the  same  person  that 
sufferedy  has  the  reivard  of  governing  the  universe,  and  bringing  His 
people  to  glory  ;  all  of  which  cannot  be  predicated  of  either  na- 
ture exclusively.      (Matt.  28.  18.  Acts  5.  31.) 


forth  from  His  eternal  concealment,  and  presented 
to  the  familiar  view  of  creatures.  In  Him  the 
glories  of  the  omnipresent  God  are  collected  to  a 
point,  and  exhibited  from  a  single  throne  to  every 
eye  in  heaven.     But, 

II.  Will  God  in  very  deed  dwell  nvith  men  on  the 
earth  ?  Yes  ;  that  glorious  Majesty  who  humbleth 
Himself  to  behold  the  things  that  are  in  heaijen^  has 
condescended  to  dwell  with  sinful  men  on  the 
earth.  Has  He  not  dwelt  with  men  ?  What  bene- 
ficent Power,  then,  has  enlightened  our  darkness, 
has  sanctified  our  natures,  has  answered  our 
prayers,  has  spoken  peace  to  our  hearts j  has  con- 
verted our  children,  has  spread  among  the  vallies 
the  beauties  of  the  Spring,  and  loaded  the  moun- 
tains with  the  fruits  of  Autumn  ?  Is  He  not  here  ? 
Here  are  His  smiles,  His  looks  of  love,  His  tokens 
of  favour.  God  is  goodness  personified,  and  in 
action.  W^herever  He  has  walked  in  the  earth,  a 
thousand  blessings  have  been  scattered  from  His 
hands,  and  an  Eden  has  bloomed  beneath  His  feet. 
Every  place  which  He  has  touched,  has  become 
like  the  house  of  Obededom. 

In  a  highly  interesting  sense.   He  dwells  in  the 

•whole  of  this  redeemed  world  ;  still  more  specially 

in  the  Church  ;    but  peculiarly  in  the  hearts  of  His 

people.     He  dwells  in  the  Church  as  He  abode  in 

B 


10 

mount  Zion  generally ;  but  the  bosom  of  His  saints 
He  makes  His  holy  of  holies. 

This  infinite  favour  comes  to  men  through  the 
intervention  of  the  Son  of  God,  the  anointed 
Mediator,  the  Christ  :  not  the  second  person  in 
the  Trinity  as  such,  and  by  no  means  the  man  of 
Nazareth  as  such ;  but  an  agent,  who,  appointed 
by  the  Father  and  subject  to  His  will,  holds  the 
middle  place  of  Mediator  between  God  and  man, 
and  unites  both  natures  in  this  one  office.  As 
it  was  owing  to  His  mediation  that  any  friendly 
intercourse  between  heaven  and  earth  was  esta- 
blished, to  Him  alone  was  committed  the  ma- 
nagement of  this  intercourse,  and  the  entire  go- 
vernment of  the  world.  With  the  Holy  Spirit 
subject  to  His  will,  He  has,  from  the  beginning, 
carried  on  all  communications  between  God  and 
man,  and  made  all  the  exhibitions  of  God  which 
have  been  seen  on  earth. 

He  never  conducted  the  affairs  of  fallen  man  as 
the  second  person  in  the  Trinity,  but  only  as  the 
Christ.  The  God  of  the  patriarchs  and  of  Israel, 
was  no  other  than  the  mediatorial  King,  acting  as 
the  representative,  and  with  the  authority,  of  the 
whole  Godhead.  It  was  the  Christ  who  appeared 
in  Eden,  and  pronounced  sentence  on  our  first  pa- 
rents.    It  was  He  who,  under  the  name  of  Jehovah, 


11 

fi-equently  appeared  to  the  patriarchs  ;  who  talked 
with  Moses  out  of  the  burning  bush  ;  who  dwelt 
in  the  pillar  of  cloud  and  of  fire  ;  and  who  gave  the 
law  at  Sinai.  It  was  He,  as  the  apostle  affirms, 
whom  Israel  tempted  in  the  wilderness.*  It  was 
He  who  dwelt  in  the  Shckinah.  It  was  He,  as  the 
evangelist  declares,  whom  Isaiah  beheld  in  his  vi- 
sion, when  he  saw  a  temple  opened  in  heaven,  and 
heard  the  seraphim,  in  adoration  of  the  Trinity, 
crying,  Holy,  holy,  holy,  is  the  Lord  of  hosts  f  ■{ 

After  acting  as  the  God  of  the  old  testament, 
this  eternal  Logos,  \\  ho  was  in  the  beginning  with 
God,  and  who  was  God,  was  made  flesh  and  dwelt 
among  us.X  He  lived,  He  toiled.  He  wept,  with 
miserable  men.  When  He  had  paid  our  ransom, 
He  ascended  on  high,  and  recei'Ded  gifts  for  men,  that 
the  Lord  God  might  dwell  among  them.  The  gifts 
which  from  the  beginning  of  the  world  He  had 
held  and  distributed,  because  He  had  given  securi- 
ty for  the  payment  of  their  price,  having  now  actu- 
ally paid  that  price,  He,  as  our  representative  and 
guardian,  more  formally  received.  The  greatest 
of  these  was  the  Holy  Spirit,  whom,  as  His  agent 
and  representative.  He  sent  forth  to  dwell  more 
sensibly  with  his  people.  And  now  the  joyful 
proclamation  was  made  in  heaven,  which  extended 

*  1  Cor    10.  9. 
\  Compare  Isai.  6.  with  John  12.  37—41.       %  John  1.  1,  l-i. 


12 

its  sounds  to  earth,  and  diffused  hope  and  transport 
through  these  abodes  of  wretchedness  :  Behold,  the 
tabernacle  of  God  is  imth  men,  and  He  will  dwell 
%vith  them,  and  they  shall  be  His  people,  and  God 
Himself  shall  be  with  them,  and  be  their  God.     But, 

III.    Can  we  presume  to  hope  that  He  will  dwell 
in  the  house  w  hich  we  have  built  ? 

Even  this  v.e  niay  hope.  Our  gracious  Father 
has  alwajs  been  pleased  to  honour  the  sanctuary 
with  His  special  presence.  By  some  it  has  been 
thought  that  the  Shekinah  dwelt  in  a  tabernacle 
among  men  immediately  after  the  fall,  and  during 
the  whole  patiiarchal  age  ;  and  that  this  was  the 
tabernacle  which  was  in  the  Church  at  Sinai,  be- 
fore that  which  was  made  after  the  pattern  shown 
in  the  mount.*  But  it  is  certain  that  when  the 
great  tabernacle  was  erected,  the  God  of  Israel  took 
up  His  abode  in  what  was  called  the  holy  of  holies. 
That  this  apartment  was  really  His  dwelling  place, 
is  evident  from  the  following,  among  many  other 
facts.  Here  His  glory  was  actually  displayed  on 
the  mercy  seat,  between  the  cherubims.  This  w  as 
the  oracle  before  which  the  priests  stood  to  inquire 
of  the  Lord  by  Urim  and  Thummim,  and  from 
which  He  gave  responses.  To  enter  the  court  to- 
wards which  the  face  of  the  Shekinah  was  directed, 
was,  in  the  language  of  inspired  men,  to  appear  be- 

*  Exod.  33.  7. 


13 

fore  the  Lord.  From  this  abode  of  the  divine  pre- 
sence issued  the  fire  which  was  kept  burning  on 
the  brazen  altar  ;  and  the  flame  which  consumed  the 
sons  of  Aaron,  when  they  presumed  lo  offer  com- 
mon fire  :  an  awful  warning  to  those  who  minister 
at  the  altar  with  fervour  not  enkindled  in  heaven. 
Once  in  a  vear,  on  the  great  day  of  atonement,  the 
typical  high  priest,  Avith  the  blood  of  expiation  in 
his  hand,  and  with  the  names  of  the  twelve  tribes 
upon  his  heart,  entered,  as  the  shadow  of  a  crucifi- 
ed and  ascending  Saviour,  this  miniature  of  heaven, 
to  intercede  for  his  people.  Thus  dwelt  the  God 
of  Israel  at  Shiloh,  at  Kirjathjearim,  in  the  tent 
which  David  pitched  in  Zion,  and  in  the  temple 
which  Solomon  built.  The  second  temple  did  not 
contain  the  Shekinah  :  it  was  the  abode,  however, 
of  the  invisible  God.  /  heard  Him,  said  the  pro- 
phet, speaking  unto  me  out  of  the  house  ;  and  He  said 
unto  7776',  Son  of  man,  the  place  of  my  throne,  and  the 
place  of  the  soles  of  my  feet,  where  I  will  dwell  in  the 
midst  of  the  children  of  Israel  forever. 

The  Lord  loved  the  gates  of  Zion  more  tJian  all 
the  dwellings  of  Jacob.  He  did  not  reject  the  in- 
cense of  private  and  social  worship  which  daily 
arose  from  the  dwellins-s  of  Jacob  ;  but  He  delieht- 
ed  rather  to  dwell,  and  to  manifest  Himself,  in  Zi- 
on, whither  the  tribes  went  up,  the  tribes  oj  the 
J^ordf  unto  the  testimony  of  Israel. 


14 

And  still,  i\)here  tivo  or  three  are  gathered  toge- 
ther in  His  name^  there  is  He  in  the  midst  oj  them. 
In  these  chambers  of  Zion,  the  christian  Church 
have  often  sat  at  His  feet  to  hear  His  words,  and 
supped  with  Him  at  His  table.  Here,  like  the  be- 
loved disciple,  they  have  frequently  leaned  upon 
His  bosom.  Here  they  have  often  seen  the  veil 
drawn  aside,  and  beheld  a  countenance  clothed 
with  eternal  smiles.  Often  have  they  seen  His 
poxver  and  glory  in  the  sanctuary ;  His  poivcr  dis- 
played in  tlie  conversion  of  sinners,  and  the  glory 
of  all  His  perfections  meeting  their  eye,  in  one 
blaze,  from  the  face  oJ  Jesus  Christ."^  » 

While  I  reflect  on  this,  my  soul  exclaims,  Hoiv 
amiable  are  thy  tabernacles^  0  Lord  of  hosts  !  Hap- 
py are  these  thy  ser^uants  which  stand  continually  be- 
fore thee^  and  hear  thy  wisdom  !  I  am  not  surprised 
to  hear  the  sweet  psalmist  of  Israel  say,  /  haz-e  loved 
the  habitation  of  thy  house,  the  place  where  thine 
honour  dwelleth.  My  heart  answers  to  his,  as  he 
takes  his  harp  and  sings  :  Beautiful  for  situation, 
the  joy  of  the  whole  earth,  is  mount  Zion,  on  the  sides 
of  the  North,  One  thing  have  1  desired  of  the  Lord, 
that  will  I  seek  after,  that  I  may  dwell  in  the  house 
of  the  Lord  all  the  days  of  my  life,  to  behold  the 
beauty  of  the  I^ord,  and  to  inquire  in  His  temple. 
For  a  day  in  thy  courts  is  better  than  a  thousand  ; 

*  2  Cor.  4.  6. 


15 

/  had  rather  be  a  door-keeper  in  the  house  of  my  God, 
than  to  dwell  m  the  tents  of  wickedness.      I  reve- 
rence the  transports  with  which  this  holy  man  ac- 
companies the  ark  into  Zion  ;  and  I  Usten  with  de- 
light to  his  song  by  the  way  :   Lord,  remember  Da- 
md,  and  all  his  afflictions  ;    ho%M  he  sware  nnto  the 
Lord,  and  ^uowed  unto  the  mighty  God  of  Jacob  : 
Surely  I  will  not  come  into  the  tabernacle  of  my 
house,  nor  go  up  into  my  bed  ;  I  will  not  give  sleep  to 
my  eyes,  nor  slumber  to  my  eyelids,  until  I  find  out  a 
place  for  the  Lord,  a  habitation  for  the  mighty  God 
of  Jacob. 

Similar  to  this  has  been  the  zeal  which  good 
men  have  shown,  from  the  earliest  ages,  to  prepare 
a  place  for  the  publick  worship  of  God.  At  first 
they  had  nothing,  probably,  but  an  altar  under  a 
o-rove,  in  the  open  air.  A  stone  consecrated  to 
God,  sometimes  became  a  Bethel.  In  later  ages, 
after  Israel  were  planted  in  Canaan,  they  had,  be- 
sides their  tabernacle  and  temple,  their  proseuchse 
or  prayer-houses,  both  before  and  after  the  Baby- 
lonish captivity,  in  all  their  dispersions  as  well  as 
in  their  own  land.  These  were  open  courts  in 
the  fields,  surrounded  commonly  with  trees,  and 
often  situated  near  the  sides  of  seas  or  rivers.  In 
these  oratories  they  prayed,  not  with  a  single  voice, 
but,  as  they  did  in  the  temple,  each  one  by  himself. 
After  their  return  from  Babylon,   they   had   also 


16 

their  synagog^ues,  not  only  in  Palestine,  but  wher- 
ever a  sufficient  number  of  Jews  resided  to  con- 
stitute an  assembly.  In  them  some  one  led  in 
publick  prayer,  and  expounded  and  enforced  the 
scriptures.  These  synagogues  occasionally  fur- 
nished churches  for  the  apostles.  The  primitive 
ch:istians  had  no  houses  set  apart  for  publick  wor- 
ship. They  met  in  synagogues,  or  school-rooms, 
or  private  apartments,  or  in  the  open  air.  In 
process  of  time,  however,  the  humble  school-room 
of  Tyrannus  was  exalted  into  a  splendid  cathedral. 
Since  then,  houses  for  publick  v^orship,  with  great- 
er or  less  magnificence,  have  been  erected  in  all 
christian  countries.  Our  pious  ancestors  intro- 
duced them  into  this  land,  and  raised  them  upon 
the  ruins  of  heathen  altars.  Happy  was  the  day 
when  the  Chuich  of  Christ  first  landed  on  these 
Western  shores  !  Happy  have  been  the  succeed- 
ing years,  which  haAe  seen  churches  formed,  and 
teuLples  arise,  through  this  land  of  light  and  li- 
berty 1  Happy  was  the  hour  when  the  foundation  of 
this  house  was  laid  :  but  more  auspicious  still  is  the 
morning  on  which  w^e  meet  to  dedicate  it  to  God. 

The  history  of  this  undertaking  is  short.  A 
few  individuals,  finding  another  house  for  divine 
worship  to  be  necessary,  united  to  erect  this. 
On  the  27th  day  of  February  last,  a  part  of  their 
number,   bv   the  aid   of  an  ecclesiastical  council, 


17 

were  formed  into  a  christian  church.  On  the  first 
day  of  May,  was  laid,  with  an  appropriate  inscrip- 
tion,* the  corner  stone  of  this  edifice,  which  is 
now  opened  for  pubHck  use. 

That  the  proprietors  were  correct  in  supposing 
another  house  to  be  necessary,  will  appear  from 
the  following  statement.  For  a  hundred  and  twen- 
ty years  after  the  first  christian  assembly  was  ga- 
thered in  this  town,  a  new  congregational  or  pres- 
byterian  church  was  established,  upon  an  average, 
once  in  twelve  years.  But  since  that  period,  that 
is,  for  near  seventy  years,  none  has  been  added  to 
the  number,  notwithstanding  the  increasing  ratio  of 
the  progress  of  population  :  but,  on  the  contrary, 
two  which  existed  at  the  commencement  of  the 
American  revolution,  have  disappeared.  In  1775, 
and  for  thirty  years  preceding,  there  were,  in  the 
town,  eleven  houses  for  publick  worship,  owned 
by  the  congregational  and  presbyterian  churches  ; 
in  1808,  there  were  but  nine.  It  was,  therefore, 
necessary,  unless  people  were  to  be  excluded  from 
the  publick  worship  of  God,  that  another  house 
should  be  provided  for  their  accommodation. 

Having,  with  this  impression,  proceeded  to  open 

a  new  church,  we  owe  it  to  the  publick  frankly  to 

disclose  the  views  which  have  governed   us,  and 

distinctly  to  announce  what  they  are  to  expect  from 
c 

*  Taken  from  Epb.  2.  20,  21. 


18 

a  place  of  worship,  which  invites  their  attention  and 
patronage.  And  this  disclosure  is  made  with  the 
more  cheerfnhiess,  as  no  object  is  set  up  at  which 
a  good  man  ought  to  blush. 

This  church  has  not  been  built,  I  trust,  from 
party  zeal,  or  ill  will  to  our  brethren  ;  but  from  a 
reasonable  desire  to  enjoy  the  right,  denied  to  none 
in  this  land  of  liberty,  of  worshipping  God  accord- 
ing to  the  dictates  of  our  own  conscience.  It  is  our 
happiness  to  have  sought  this  privilege,  not  where 
the  rights  of  conscience  are  unknown,  but  in  this  an- 
cient and  respectable  town  which  has  often  been  call- 
ed the  cradle  of  American  liberty.  We  can  have  no 
reason  to  fear  that  the  descendants  of  those,  who  by 
their  intrepid  defence  of  the  rights  of  man  recent- 
ly gave  a  new  era  to  the  world,  will  envy  us  this 
privilege  of  freemen.  They  would  indignantly  re- 
sent any  attempt  that  should  be  made  to  destroy  or 
imbitter  this  most  precious  portion  of  our  liberties. 
But  no  such  attempt  will  be  made.  This  is  the 
renowned  seat  of  Catholicism.  Here  men  regard, 
with  a  liberal  smile,  those  whose  religious  opinions 
differ  from  their  own.  Surely  then  we  should  es- 
cape rebuke,  were  we  even  attempting  to  give  cur- 
rency to  new  doctrines.  But  this  is  not  our  ob- 
ject. We  have  no  greater  desire  than  to  see  those 
truths  prevail  which  all  our  congregational  church- 
es have  acknowledged  ;    and  that  religion,  which 


19 

has  made  the  name  of  Boston  musick  to  many 
thousands  of  ears  which  are  now  listening  to  the 
songs  of  seraphs. 

The  worship  of  God,  as  conducted  in  this  house, 
will  not,  I  hope,  wear  the  appearance  of  controver- 
sy ;  much  less,  of  bitterness  against  others  ;  but  of 
meekness,  rather,  and  gentleness,  as  the  spirit  of  the 
gospel  dictates.  This  pulpit  was  not  erected  to 
hurl  anathemas  against  men  who  to  their  own 
master  must  stand  or  fall.  But  here,  with  an  eye 
uplifted  to  heaven,  and  filled  with  tears,  we  are  to 
make  supplication  for  ourselves,  our  families,  our 
brethren,  and  for  a  world  lying  in  wickedness. 
Here,  I  hope,  the  truths  of  the  gospel  will  be 
preached  in  all  their  simplicity,  in  all  their  mild- 
ness, and  in  all  their  force  ;  without  uncharitable 
allusions  to  any  who  may  defend  different  views  of 
the  scriptures.  The  busmess  to  be  transacted 
here,  lies  not  between  us  and  our  brethren  of  differ- 
ent names  or  opinions  ;  but  between  God  and  our 
own  souls.  Pursuing  such  a  course,  if  we  are  not 
so  happy  as  to  command  the  esteem  of  the  candid 
and  peaceable,  we  \vill  endeavour,  at  least,  to  de- 
serve it. 

In  the  cause  of  truth  no  unhallowed  violence,  no 
efforts  contrary  to  the  humility  and  meekness  of 
christian  love,  are  either  necessary  or  admissible. 
In  the  support  of  this  cause  man  is  not  to  prevail, 


20 

but  God.  Man  is  a  poor,  feeble  instrument ;  and 
has  nothing  to  do,  but,  like  Gideon,  to  bloio  his. 
trumpet^  and  hold  his  lamp^  and  stand  still  in  his 
place  :  the  victory  and  the  glory  are  the  Lord's. 
The  man  who  is  deeply  impressed  with  these 
truths,  will  not  strii^e^  but  will  be  gentle  unto  all 
men.  It  is  more  in  character  for  those  who  as- 
cribe all  the  power  to  man,  or  who  support  a  cause 
which  God  does  not  favour, — it  is  more  in  cha- 
racter for  them  to  bring  their  passions  to  the  com- 
bat, to  throw  their  unsanctified  feelings  into  action, 
and  assail  the  persons  or  characters  of  their  oppo- 
nents. But  the  cause  of  truth  and  of  God  dis- 
claims all  such  aid. 

This  house,  though  not  raised  for  controversial 
discussions,  has  been  built  by  those  who  esteem  it 
far  from  indifferent  what  doctrines  a  man  believes  ; 
and  who  doubt  not  that  his  religion  will  take  its 
shape  from  the  articles  of  his  faith.  Their  object 
has  been  to  subserve  that  experimental  religion 
which  is  intimately  connected  with  the  doctrines  of 
grace.  These  doctrines  have,  in  every  age,  been 
manifestly  owned  by  the  divine  Spirit,  by  being 
used  as  the  great  instruments  of  revivals  of  re- 
ligion. And  I  hesitate  not  to  add,  that  their  eulogy 
has  been  strongly  and  steadily  pronounced  by  the 
general  voice  of  the  christian  world.  In  the  early 
ages  of  Christianity,  they  bore  the  name  of  the  or 


21 

thodox  and  catholick  faith ;  and  were  maintained  by 
the  whole  body  of  the  Church,  in  opposition  to  tlie 
sects  which  had  withdrawn  from  its  communion. 
They  were  the  doctrines  of  the  glorious  Reforma- 
tion. Since  that  memorable  era,  they  have  been, 
with  some  exceptions,  the  common  faith  of  the  pro- 
testant  world.  We  find  them  in  the  Westminster 
confession  of  faith,  and  in  that  excellent  catechism, 
which,  from  our  childhood,  we  have  been  taught 
to  reverence.  For  the  love  which  our  fathers  bore 
to  this  system  of  faith  and  piety,  they  left  forever 
their  native  shores,  to  seek  an  asylum  for  their  fa- 
milies and  their  religion  in  these  Western  wilds. 
They  bore  these  doctrines  in  their  hearts,  when 
they  rode  the  Atlantick  wave  ;  and  in  their  concern 
for  forms,  felt  chiefly  a  desire  to  press  the  naked 
point  of  these  truths  upon  the  hearts  of  men.  The 
churches  which  they  established,  received  no  other 
faith.  And  to  this  day,  there  are  few  churches  in 
New-England,  or  the  United  States,  which  are  not 
ready  to  hazard  their  lives  in  defence  of  the  faith 
once  delhered  unto  the  saints. 

But  no  place  on  earth  has  been  more  distinguish- 
ed for  a  bold  and  manly  vindication  of  these  sacred 
truths,  than  this  ancient  refuge  of  the  Pilgrims. 
We  daily  walk  over  the  ashes  of  some  of  the  most 
valiant  champions  of  the  christian  faith  ;  and  con- 
stantly breathe  the  air  that  was  perfumed  by  the  in- 


22 

cense  of  their  prayers.  What  christian  has  lived 
in  any  period  of  the  last  century  and  a  half,  and 
has  not  heard  of  the  impenetrable  phalanx  formed 
by  the  ministers  of  Boston,  to  defend  the  doctrines 
of  the  Reformation  ?  These  were  the  truths  taught 
by  your  Wilsons,  your  Cottons,  your  Mathers, 
your  Thachers,  your  Willards,  your  Colmans, 
your  Pembertons,  your  Sewalls,  your  Princes,  your 
Webbs,  your  Coopers,  your  Foxcrofts,  your  Check- 
leys,  your  Moorheads,  your  Eliots ;  and  as  many 
more,  whose  names  will  always  adorn  the  annals  of 
the  Church. 

If  the  tendency  of  any  religion  was  ever  tho- 
roughly tested,  it  was  the  religion  of  the  fathers  of 
New-England.  No  such  colonies  ever  formed  the 
beginning  of  any  other  nation  :  no  other  nation 
ever  inherited  equal  blessings  from  their  ancestors. 
By  what  then  were  those  colonies  distinguished  ? 
By  the  purity  of  their  faith,  and  the  fervour  of 
their  piety.  These  evidently  had  a  leading  influence 
in  forming  the  state  of  society,  and  the  venerable 
institutions,  which  they  bequeathed  to  posterity. 
The  happiness  of  New-England  is  a  monument, 
raised  upon  an  eminence,  to  teach  the  world  the 
tendency  of  the  faith  and  piety  of  the  Puritans. 
I  venerate  those  holy  men.  I  reverence  their  forti- 
tude, their  patience,  their  wisdom  ;  but  most  of 
all,  their  love  of  truth.     I  feel  ambitious  to  say, 


23 

Among  those  ancestors  were  my  own  ;  and  in 
this  ground  sleeps  the  dust  of  my  fathers.  But  I 
am  more  ambitious  to  say,  Their  views  of  evange- 
lical truth  are  mine.  It  is  with  mingled  emotions  of 
pleasure  and  hope,  that  I  see  an  edifice  raised  to 
support  the  doctrines  of  our  forefathers  ;  and  to 
promote  those  views  o^ practical  religion  which  re- 
strained them  from  frivolity,  and  prompted  them  to 
a  course  of  strict  and  manly  piety. 

What  then  were  those  doctrines  and  views  ?  I 
will  tell  you; — that  if  ever  the  time  should  come, 
when  men  shall  support  themselves  by  a  professed 
veneration  for  the  religion  of  our  ancestors,  while 
seeking  to  banish  that  religion  from  the  world,  you 
may  know  what  our  fathers  believed. 

From  authentick  histories  of  past  times,  from  the 
confessions  of  faith  which  our  fathers  adopted,  and 
from  the  books  which  they  wrote,  it  is  known  that 
they  were  decided  Cahinists, 

They  believed  that  "  there  are  three  persons  in 
the  Godhead,  the  Father,  the  Son,  and  the  Holy 
Ghost ;"  that  "  these  three  are  one  God,  the  same 
in  substance,  equal  in  power  and  glory." 

They  believed  that  God  left  nothing  to  the  ca- 
pricious operations  of  chance ;  that  He  eternally 
determined  'what  He  would  do^  or  suffer  to  be 
done;    and  that  His  governpient,  thus  shaped  and 


24 

settled  by  His  infinite  and  unchanging  wisdom, 
extends  to  all  events,  as  well  in  the  moral  as 
natural  world. 

They  believed  that  the  scriptures  of  the  old 
and  new  testament,  given  at  first  by  the  in- 
spiration of  God,  have  been  preserved,  by  His 
providence,  sufficiently  pure  and  entire  ;  and 
that  the  translation  which  we  have  in  our  hands, 
is,   in  every    important  point,    correct. 

They  believed  that  by  the  offence  of  one,  judgment 
came  upon  all  men  to  condemnation  ;*  that  the  pos- 
terity of  Adam  are  shapen  in  iniquity ,  and  conceived 
in  sin^\  are  by  nature  the  children  of  wrath^X  dead 
in  trespasses  and  sins,\  and  possess  that  carnal  mind 
which  is  enmity  against  God.^ 

They  believed  that  the  second  person  in  the 
adorable  Trinity,  took  upon  Himself,  as  Mediator, 
the  seed  of  Abraham  ;  and  that  this  Mediator  suf- 
fered death,  as  a  vicarious  sacrifice,  to  atone  for  the 
sins  of  the  world. 

They  believed  that  no  man  can  see  the  kingdom 
of  God,  except  he  be  born  again  \^  that  this  change, 
which  in  scripture  is  called  a  ne'vo  creation,^*  a  new 
birth,-\-\  a  resurrection  from  the  dead^W  is  pro- 
duced by  the  supernatural  influence  of  the  divine 

*  Rom.  5.  18.      t  Ps.  51.  5.      +  Eph.  2.  3.      §  Eph.  2.  1. 
II  Rom.  8. 7.      H  John  3.  3.      **  2  Cor.  5. 17- 
tt  John  1.  13.      W  John  5.  2^. 


25 

Spirit ;  that  there  is  a  specifick  difference  between 
common  and  special  grace  ;  that  the  repentance 
and  faith  necessary  to  salvatioii^aj^  altogether  dis- 
tinct from  any  thing  which  exists  in  the  heart  be- 
fore this  change. 

They  beheved  that  hy  the  deeds  of  the  hnv  no 
flesh  shall  he  justified  ;^     that    hy  grace  we  are 
saved^  through  faiths    and  that  not  of  ourselves,  it 
is  the  gift  of  God.f 

They  beheved  that  God  hath  chosen  His  saints 
in  Christ  hefore  the  foundation  of  the  world,  that 
they  should  he  holy,  and  without  hlame  hefore  Him 
in  love  ;  having  predestinated  them  unto  the  adop- 
tion of  children  by  Jesus  Christ  to  Himself  accord^ 
ing  to  the  good  pleasure  of  His  will ;  %  that  as  many 
as  were  ordained  to  eternal  Ife,  will  believe, §  heing 
predestinated  according  to  the  purpose  of  Him  %vho 
worketh  all  things  after  the  counsel  of  His  own 
%mll ;  II  that  the  names  of  those  v\  ho,  in  the  eternal 
covenant  of  redemption,  were  given  to  Christ, 
were  written  in  the  hook  of  life  from  the  foundation 
of  the  world  ;\  that,  in  the  same  transaction,  the 
Mediator  received  power  over  all  flesh,  that  He 
should  give  eternal  life  to  as  many  as  the  Father 

*  Rom.  3.  20.       t  Eph.  2.  8.        \  Eph.  1.  4,  5.       §  Acts  13.  48. 
11  Eph.  1.  11.  II  Rev.  17.  8. 

D 


26 

had  gheti  Him  ;*  that  ail  whom  t/ie  Father  hath 
given  Him,  shall  come  to  Him ;  that  of  all  these  He 
will  lose  nothings  but  will  raise  it  up  again  at  the  last 
day  ;t  that  the  Father  which  gai)e  them  Him  is 
greater  than  all^  and  none  is  able  to  pluck  them  out 
of  the  Father'^ s  hand  ;\  and  that  of  course  they 
will  be  kept  by  the  power  of  God  through  Jaith  unto 
salvation.  \\ 

They  believed  that  the  wicked  will  be  punished 
with  everlasting  destruction  from  the  presence  of  the 
Lord,  and  from  the  glory  of  His  power.  § 

They  belicA^ed  that  the  Church  and  the  world 
are  two  separate  kingdoms  ;  and  that  none  but 
true  believers  have  a  right  to  the  sacraments  of  the 
new  testament,  either  for  themselves  or  their 
children.  Tl 

They  believed  in  revivals  of  religion,  produced 
by  extraordinary  effusions  of  the  divine  Spirit. 

They  wai'ned  their  contemporaries  and  posterity 
against  those  who  are  lovers  of  pleasures  more  than 

*  John  17. 2.  t  John  6.  37,  39.  *  John  10.  29. 

1)1  Pet.  1.5.  §2Thes.l.9. 

^  Though  some  diversity  of  opinion,  in  respect  to  the  qualifica- 
tions requisite  for  offering  a  child  in  baptism,  was,  in  later  times, 
introduced  ;  yet  the  first  fathers  of  New-England  uniformly  sup- 
ported  the  opinion  abore  stated. 


27 

lowers  of  God  ;  liamng  a  form  of  godliness^  but  de- 
nying the  power  .•*  and,  by  their  own  dignified 
and  holy  example,  they  strongly  discountenanced 
a  plunge  into  that  whirl  of  dissipation  which 
drowns  men  in  destruction  and  perdition. 

Such  were  the  views  of  the  fathers  of  New-Eng- 
land :  and  I  repeat  the  declaration,  that  to  support 
the  same  views  of  the  truths  and  duties  of  our  ho- 
ly religion,  this  church  was  erected.  Those, 
therefore,  who  stand  in  the  %vays,  and  ask  for  the 
good  old  paths,  and  walk  therein,  will  say,  P^jc^  ^^ 
to  this  house  :  those  only  who  have  abandoned  the 
religion  of  their  fathers,  will  regard  it  with  a  cold 
or  a  jealous  eye. 

It  is  proper  for  me  further  to  state,  that  if  our 
earnest  desires  are  accomplished,  we  shall  see,  in  this 
house,  the  power  and  glory  of  the  Lord,  as  our 
blessed  ancestors  beheld  Him  in  the  sanctuary.  It 
shall  not  be  concealed,  it  shall  never  call  forth  a 
blush,  that  this  edifice  was  reared  with  many 
prayers  and  hopes  that  it  might  prove  subservient 
to  revivals  of  religion.  And  if  this  should  be  the 
will  of  God,  and  another  Pentecost  should  come, 
let  none  say,  These  men  are  full  of  new  wine. 
Should  three  thousand  be  pricked  in  the  heart  at 

*  2  Tim.  3.  4,  5. 


28 

once,  the  Holy  Ghost  will  decide  whether  this 
would  furnish  a  fit  subject  for  ridicule,  or  an  occa- 
sion for  joy  and  praise.  Why  should  that  be  de- 
nounced as  enthusiasm,  in  our  days,  which,  in  the 
days  of  the  apostles,  was  the  power  of  God  ?  Is  it 
possible  diat  the  heirs  of  our  fathers'  virtues, 
should  spurn  a  blessing  for  which  those  fathers 
prayed  \\  ith  their  dying  breath  ?  Should  the  liber- 
tine, smitten  here  v\ ith  the  po\\er  of  truth,  become 
chaste,  the  prayerless  devout,  and  the  infidel  a 
christian,  ^^  ho  ought  to  be  offended  ?  Should  the 
whole  assembly  become  solemn  and  earnest  in 
their  inquiries  after  truth,  who  could  convict  them 
of  making  an  improper  use  of  the  house  of  God  ? 
People  rush,  with  all  their  hearts,  to  scenes  of 
pleasure,  and  haunts  of  business  ;  and  why  should 
they  not,  with  all  their  hearts,  come  before  the 
Lord  ?  While  they  are  allowed  to  be  eager  in  all 
other  pursuits,  surely  it  cannot  be  demonstrated 
that  they  are  bound  to  go  to  the  temple  of  the  living 
God  to  sleep,  or  to  laugh,  or  to  gaze  vacantly 
about,  and  return  without  a  thought  of  what  they 
have  heard.  I  hope  in  God  that  this  house  will 
never  be  profaned  by  indecorous  levity  ;  nor 
stand  for  a  handful  of  easy  men  to  amuse  them- 
seh  es  in  for  an  hour,  one  half  of  the  day  ;  but  that 
it  will  be  croudcd  with  solemn  and  aifected  worship- 


29 

pers  ; — with  people  who  are   conscious  that  they 
have  souls,  and  must  give  an  account  to  God. 

And  now,  in  pursuance  of  the  design  of  our 
meeting,  we  proceed  to  dedicate  this  house  to  Him 
for  whom  it  was  erected.     May  God  attend  !  Let 

all  the  angels  witness  ! We  religiously  devote 

this  edifice  to  the  Father,  infinite  and  self-existent ; 
to  the  Son,  the  brightness  of  His  Father's  glory  ; 
■to  the  Holy  Ghost,  almighty  and  eternal.     To  the 
honour  and  service  of  the  ever  blessed  Trinity  we 
solemnly  dedicate  these  walls,  these  arches,  these 
columns,  this  pulpit,  that  towering  spire,  and  all  that 
contains,  with  all  that  is  contained  within  these  sa- 
cred limits.     For  the  preaching  of  the  word,  for  the 
publick  service  of  prayer  and  praise,  for  the  adminis- 
tration of  the  sacraments  of  the  new  testament,  and 
for  the  residence  of  the  eternal  God,  we  consecrate 
the  house.     And  now,   O  Lord,  if  dust  and  ashes 
may  speak  to  thee,  graciously  attend  to  our  suppli- 
cations !      When    thy   people,    overwhelmed   ^vitll 
trouble,  shall  spread  their  distresses  before  thee  in 
this  house  ;  w/ieji  the  hea'uen  is  shut  up,  and  there  is 
no  rain,  or  they  are  put  to  the  worse  before  the  ene* 
my,  or  their  spiritual  foes  carry  them  away  captims  ; 
and  they  shall  return,  and  confess  their  sins,  and 
pray  before  thee,  in  this  place ;    then  do  thou  hear, 
and  answer  !  When,  under  temptation  or  darkness, 


30 

they  shall  come  hither  to  inquire  of  thee  as  by 
Urim  and  Thummim,  do  thou  give  responses,  and 
guide  them  ivith  thy  counsel !  And  now,  what  wait 
we  for  ?  Arise,  0  Lord,  into  thy  rest,  thou  and  the 
ark  of  thy  strength! — Behold  Him  here !  His  glory 
fills  the  house !  Bow  yourselves  before  a  present 
God! 

How  dreadful  is  this  place  !  this  is  none  other  but 
the  house  of  God,  and  this  is  the  gate  of  heaven  !  I 
am  filled  with  awe  as  the  sacredness  of  the  place, 
and  the  everlasting  consequences  of  preparing  and 
devoting  it  to  God,  rise  before  me !  Here  God  will 
sit ;  and  hither  His  people  will  come  to  receive 
instruction  from  His  lips,  and  blessings  from  His 
hands.  Here  the  despairing  sinner  will  find  a 
beam  of  hope.  Balm  will  here  be  offered  to  heal 
the  broken  heart.  The  Lord  'will  count,  when  He 
writeth  up  the  people,  that  this  and  that  man  was 
born  here.  But,  O  my  soul !  what  thinkest  thou  of 
the  negociations  for  peace  between  heaven  and 
earth,  which  are  here  to  be  carried  on  ?  If  all  na- 
tions turn  their  eyes  to  the  place  where  a  treaty  be- 
tween the  powers  of  Europe,  is  discussed ;  with 
what  interest  do  our  departed  fathers  contemplate 
such  a  place  as  this  !  Spirits  of  VVhitefield,  Tennent, 
Davies,  and  Edwards !  how,  as  ye  pass  over,  do  ye 
regard  an  assembly  of  immortal  creatures,  listening 


31 

to  the  messages  of  God,  while  ye  see  the  record- 
ing angel  registering  their  names,  and  imprinting 
on  the  tablets  of  eternity  their  treatment  of  the 
propositions  of  heaven  ?  As  ye  range  the  fields  of 
light,  and  behold  some  of  your  former  hearers 
wrapt  in  folds  of  eternal  darkness,  tell  us,  heavenly 
spirits,  what  think  ye  of  the  house  of  God  ? 

In  this  house  the  gospel  will  be  to  some  the  sa- 
vour of  life  unto  life ;  and  to  others,  rA^  savour  of 
death  unto  death.  Should  this  church  stand  a 
century  and  a  half,  and  its  seats  be  generally  filled, 
how  many  thousands  will  hear  the  gospel  within 
these  walls !  Millions  of  times  will  all  those 
thousands  look  back  from  eternity  to  this  house, 
with  inconceivable  pleasure  or  pain.  By  all  those 
thousands,  the  effect  of  its  erection  and  dedication 
will  be  felt,  millions  of  ages  after  this  world  is  no 
more.  These  measures,  then,  I  consider  as  the  an- 
tecedents of  happiness  and  misery,  greater  than  the 
mind  of  man  can  now  conceive.  The  time  will 
come  when  not  a  tongue  in  the  universe  will  make 
these  measures  the  subject  of  a  jest. 

I  am  prompted,  not  less  by  justice  than  by  feel- 
ing, to  commend,  in  terms  the  most  respectful,  the 
exertions  which  have  been  made  by  the  proprietors 
©f  this  house.     That  so  small  a  number  of  men 


32 

should  complete  so  spacious  and  beautiful  an  edi- 
fice, in  the  course  of  eight  months,  is  a  wonder 
which  has  no  parallel  in  the  history  of  American 
churches.  May  this  structure  long  stand  a  monu- 
ment of  their  liberality  and  zeal  for  the  worship  of 
God  and  may  they,  and  their  children,  and  their 
children's  children,  find,  within  these  walls,  the 
means  and  earnest  of  eternal  life  ! 

We  have  abundant  reason  to  acknowledge  the 
goodness  of  God  in  bringing  this  important  enter- 
prise to  so  happy  an  issue,  without  the  sacrifice  of 
any  lives,  or  material  injury  to  any  person.  I  ten- 
der you  my  hearty  congratulations  on  the  occa- 
sion ;  and  invite  you,  my  dear  brethren,  to  join  in 
thanksgiving  and  praise  to  Him  who  has  gracious- 
ly prospered  our  humble  endeavours.  On  every 
wall  and  door  let  your  faith  read  this  inscription, 
Except  the  Lord  build  the  house,  they  labour  in  ^ain 
that  build  it. 

Finally,  my  brethren,  though  this  is  a  noble  be- 
ginning, I  must  not  neglect  to  remind  you  that  the 
principal  thing  remains  yet  to  be  done.  The 
grand  consummation  is  faithfully  to  employ  the 
house  in  the  worship  of  Him  for  whom  it  was  built. 
Otherwise  you  lose  all  your  labour,  and  pronounce 
this  dedication  a  solemn  farce.     It  would  be  lamen- 


33 

table  if  any  of  you,  after  all  these  exertions,  should 
be  excluded  from  the  congregation  of  the  righteous. 
Save   me  from  the  anguish  of  such  anticipations ! 
Come,  then,  as  often  as  these  opening  doors  shall 
invite  you,  and,  in  the  spirit  of  humble  worshippers, 
present  yourselves,  with  your  families,  before  the 
Lord.     Let  no  idle  fancy,  no  unhallowed  feeling, 
ever  pass  these  consecrated  thresholds.     In  a  house 
devoted  to  God,  you  have  no  right  to  think  your  own 
thoughts,  or  find  your  own  pleasures.     Charge  your 
affections  not  to  linger  upon  the  sounds  which  shall 
here  be  uttered,  or  upon  the  objects  which  shall  here 
meet  the  eye.    Extend  your  views  above  the  house. 
God  is  not  confined  to  temples  made  with  hands. 
The  heaven  of  heavens  cannot  contain  Him.    Burst- 
ing every  barrier,  and  breaking  every  enchantment, 
let  your  thoughts  rise,  in  the  grandeur  of  true  devo- 
tion, to  Him  who  fills  all  space.      And   when  the 
dust  of  this  crumbled  edifice  shall  be  scattered  upon 
the  winds  of  heaven  ; — when  the  stones  of  the  last 
earthly  sanctuary  shall  tremble  in  the  convulsions  of 
expiring  nature  ; — when  the  agonies  of  disappoint- 
ment and  despair  shall  seize  on  those  who  reproach- 
ed your  religion  ; — then,  in  the  full  assembly  of 
your  fathers,  and  with  all  the  triumphs  of  victory, 
you    shall   ride  the    clouds   with   your    victorious 
Prince.     And  when  all  the  myriads  of  the  redeem- 


•  34 

ed,  following  the  triumphant  chariot  of  their  return- 
ing King,  shall  shout  at  heaven's  gate,  Lift  up  yoiiv 
Jieads^  ye  everlasting  doors,  and  the  King  of  glory 
shall  come  in  /  you  shall  be  welcomed  to  those 
abodes  of  salvation  where  there  is  7io  te?nple,  but  t/ie 
Lord  God  Almighty,  and  the  Lamb.     Amen. 


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